The Red House by Roz Watkins (Audiobook)

 

Twenty years ago, teenager Joseph Flowers brutally murdered his family then drove to a friend's house to complete writing a computer game he was working on. The following morning, as he was fleeing, he crashed and has been in a vegetative state ever since. Celestine Flowers, 6 years old at the time of the murders, was the only survivor. Now living under an assumed name, Eve, she tries to live a quiet life, avoiding any connection with the murders at The Red House. When her grandmother asks her to visit, a series of events are set in motion which lead to devastating consequences and shocking revelations.

The Red House from Roz Watkins is an engrossing thriller with numerous plot twists. You certainly have to keep your wits about you in order to keep up with what is happening. The opening chapters quickly give the background to the brutal murders, setting the scene for the present.

We learn that Joseph was a bit of a loner who liked to write computer games. At the time of the murders, he had been working on his game, The Red House, and people believe that he had included a hidden level explaining why he had carried out the murders. I liked this plot point as it gave us an insight into Joseph's nature and also a reason for the murders to have a cult-like status.

Celestine/Eve is trying to live a quiet life and not draw attention to herself. She's changed her name, and at times resorts to changing her appearance, but every so often she's spotted, usually by people interested in finding the hidden level in the computer game. As a result of this, she is reluctant to trust people. There is an added complication in that she suffers from face blindness. Initially, I thought this was an unnecessary addition to the story-line, but it becomes pivotal to the plot on a number of occasions.

When Eve visits her grandmother it leads to the discovery that she has been caring for Joseph at home and she wants Eve to take over when she dies. It is this revelation that sets in motion a series of murders. Eve's grandmother has discovered that Joseph can communicate with his eyes and this leads to doubts about who actually committed the murders.

As we delved into the computer game and Eve tried to solve the mystery of what happened at The Red House, a range of different characters were introduced. Just like Eve, I didn't completely trust each character, wondering if they had an ulterior motive. As we approached the conclusion I did feel that the story-line became overly complicated, but the plot twists were impossible to guess and left me reeling at the end.

The Red House by Roz Watkins is published on 22nd June 2023 in hardback, ebook and audio format. My thanks to NetGalley and HarperCollins UK for a review copy.